Catamenial appliance with disposable supports



G. TORRES 3,461,873 CATAMENIAL APPLIANCE WITH DISPOSABLE SUPfORTS Aug. 19, 1969 Filed Sept. 2, 1966 Inventor United States Patent O1 fice 3,461,873 Patented Aug. 19, 1969 US. Cl. 128-289 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A catamenial appliance of the pad type with attached strap supports at the opposite ends of the pad for securing the appliance to the body of the user, said straps being disposable with the pad.

This invention relates to a catamenial appliance of the absorbent pad type for external use, and particularly relates to an appliance which includes inexpensive and efficient supports that may be disposed with the pad.

Catamenial appliances of the pad type are worn with a specially designed belt or support which is elastic and which has fasteners at preselected positions which are adapted to be mounted to the opposite ends of the pad when placed in use. While such belts cannot be said to be expensive, there is suflicient cost involved to compel a decision to reuse such belts, even with repeated laundering to a point where the useful life of the elastic belt is exhausted. The elastic property of such belts is the principal reason for the expense, and such elasticity is required to accommodate or adjust the fasteners at their preselected positions to the opposite anchoring end portions of the pad.

In addition to the expense, there is the not inconsiderable inconvenience of keeping such a belt conveniently available when it is required. Since in many women the onset of the menstrual period is unpredictable, the inconvenience may be greatly increased. A pad may be carried with the person in anticipation of such an onset, but the necessity of carrying the belt is an added concern which may easily be forgotten.

An added problem which may be frequently encountered is the relative availabilities of the pad and the belt, especially evident when they are required at places removed from the larger shopping areas where a wide variety of goods are normally expected to be available. In other words, it is usually far more convenient to obtain a catamenial pad than to obtain the belt therefore.

A disposable belt or support which is part of the catamenial appliance is therefore a desirable objective, especially where they are efficiently and economically combined. It would also be desirable to obtain an economical and efficient combination where the belt or support is not an attached part of the catamenial appliance. Such a combination will still have marked advantages because the support may be economically disposed with the pad.

It is accordingly one object of this invention to provide a catamenial absorbent pad with attached disposable supports to securely mount the appliance to the bodily dimensions of a particular user.

It is another object of this invention to provide an economical combination of a catamenial pad and disposable support which efliciently serves its intended purposes, but which may be disposed without economic disadvantage.

It is likewise an object of this invention to provide a combination of a catamenial pad and a disposable support which may be conveniently and economically packaged together for wide distribution and accessibility in places where such catamenial pads are now readily accessible.

It is a further object of this invention a combination of a catamenial pad and disposable support which can be used in an engageable but non-attached relationship, said combination being adapted for convenient packaging and distribution. This object is further served by providing adjustable fastening between the pad and its supports to accommodate different bodily proportions, and to further provide such adjustable fastening means on the economical and disposable belt, or on extended end portions of the pad.

A further object of this invention is to provide a unitary catamenial pad and disposable support in which an adjustable fastening means is mounted on a support, and which appliance is adaptable for secure mounting on users of varying bodily proportions. The unitary pad and disposable support of this object still possess the advantage of being economically manufactured and packaged, as well as being available for wide distribution in all places where catamenial pads are now available, including vending machines.

The foregoing objects are attained by the invention which will be described, and other objects will be attained which are not stated but which will also be appreciated by users of this invention.

The disclosure of the invention includes drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a catamenial appliance with attached disposable supports and adjustable fastening means;

FIGURE 2 is a front view of the appliance of FIGURE 1 on a reduced scale secured to a user who is indicated diagrammatically and in phantom;

FIGURE 3 is a back view which is otherwise similar to the view of FIGURE 2.;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a disposable support showing a pair of position adjustable fastening means;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective of an alternative embodiment of an adjustable fastening means;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective of an alternative embodiment of a pad and disposable support combination with adjustable fastening means provided at the ends of said pad; and

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary front elevational view on an enlarged scale of a fastening means which can be provided on the end of the pad shown in FIGURE 6.

The use of the same numerals in the various views will indicate a reference to the same parts and relationships, as the case may be.

Looking at FIGURE 1, an absorbent catamenial pad is shown generally at 10, and such pad is of the type widely distributed under the trademark, Kotex. Such a pad includes a body of absorbent cotton fiber or the like 12 and a thin covering of spaced fiber material 14 which is easily pervious to the absorbable body fluid discharge or menses. Such a covering is conventionally modified into extending end portions 16 and 18 which are generally in the form of triangular tabs extending beyond the ends of the absorbent body portion 14. To the apex of one end portion or tab such as 18 is attached a flexible strap 20 by means such as sewn threads 22. To the opposite end portion or tab are attached a pair of flexible straps 24 and 26 by means such as sewn threads indicated at 28 and 30. Strap 26 is shown to be substantially longer than its paired strap 24 so that the free ends of straps 24 and 26 may be joined together by means such as a releasable knot, as indicated at 32 in FIGURE 2, substantially to one side of a fictional median line 34 of the users body.

One of the paired straps, here shown as strap 26, has

an adjustable fastening means shown generally as 38 mounted in sliding engagement thereon. Such means is shown with a loop 40 defining a passageway 42 therein to receive the strap such as 26. Connected to the loop 40 is a locking or holding means shown as a plate 44 with an upper cutout 46 to receive the loop. The plate shows an integral piercing pin 48 on which the end portion of strap 20 may be anchored, hooked or impaled when the catamenial appliance is worn in use.

The manner of using and securing the foregoing appliance is indicated in FIGURES 2 and 3. The paired straps 24 and 26 are brought around the torso or body 50 of the user to bring the free ends of the straps from around the back of the body to the front of the body where the free ends are tied or otherwise secured as in dicated at 32. The single strap 20 is joined to the fastening means 38, which has been moved substantially in position to receive the free end of the strap 20. The free end of strap 20 is inserted through plate 44 and pulled therethrough until the pad is desirably positioned in place. The material of the strap is such that it is easily penetrated by the pin 48, and such materail may be simple cloth, low density flexible plastic, paper composition, or the like. The foregoing embodiment has described placing the catamenial appliance in use by bringing the paired straps from the back of the body to the front of the body, but it may likewise be vice versa.

The single and paired straps of the foregoing embodiment may be selected and attached to the normally extending end covering portions which are present on conventional pads, or such straps may be continuous extensions of such end covering portions. In other words, such end portions may be modified to provide the elongated straps of the same thin and spaced fiber covering.

The disposable support may be modified to the alternative embodiment of FIGURE 4. Here, a continuous elongated strap 56 is of sufiicient length to be turned around the waist of the user, whereupon its free ends may be joined by a releasable knot or the like. The strap 56 has a pair of slidable position adjustable fastening means 53 and 60 which may be of the same general type described in association with FIGURE 1. After the strap 56 is secured to the body of the user, with the free ends joined to one side of the median line of the body, the fastening means are positioned so one means is aligned substantially with one end portion of a conventional pad, or a pad with its conventional end portion extended; and the other means is aligned substantially with the other conventional end portion, or its extension. The end portions are then engaged to the plates after being drawn through the plates to obtain a sufficiently secure fit.

A further embodiment is indicated in FIGURE 6 where the absorbable body 64 of the pad has a thin covering 66 of the type described in association with FIGURE 1, and such covering likewise extends to triangular end portions, tabs or the like 68 and 70. A single flexible strap 72 is attached to one end portion and another single strap 74 is attached to the opposite end portion. The straps 72 and 74 may also be continuous extensions of the covering 66, if desired. The elongated straps have mounted thereon fastening means indicated at 76 and 78, which fastenin means are adapted to receive the free ends of the straps after they have been turned around a disposable elongated and flexible strap 78. The strap 78 is secured to the users body by joining the free ends as a releasable knot or the like as indicated at 80'.

A representative fastening means is indicated in the fragmentary view of FIGURE 7. A buckle element 84 is shown fixed to a strap such as 72 by means indicated at 86. Such means may be a rivet, sewn threads, staples or the like. The buckle element has an upper cutout 88 and a lower cutout 90 to receive the free end of the strap 72 in the usual way so that such strap can be desirably pulled tight to secure the pad in place. It is not required that a fastening means of this type be adjustably mounted on the straps because the straps can be adjusted by pulling their free ends to take up the desired degree of slack or play. If, however, one desires to provide an adjustable fastening means on the strap to provide varying points for selectively locking the turned over portion of the straps, such can be selected from one of the known and available forms.

An alternative slidable fastening means, which can be used on the embodiments of FIGURES 1 and 4, is shown in FIGURE 5. The loop 92 defines a. passageway 94 therein. A substantially rigid tube or body is fixed to the material 98 of the loop by means such as sewn threads or an adhesive indicated at 100. The substantially rigid body 96 defines a passageway 102 through which a flexible strap may be passed such as 26 in FIGURE 1 and 56 in FIGURE 4. The lower end of the loop is shown passing through a cutout 104 in a locking plate shown generally as 106. The locking plate has an opening 108 sufficiently large to receive a free end of a strap with ease, and the plate has a constrictive opening 110 communicating therewith to squeeze the strap in holding relationship when the strap is pulled down into such constriction. Such a substantially rigid tube may also be rigidly fixed or pivotally directed to the locking plate, if desired.

The catamenial appliance disclosed herein includes an absorbable pad associated with disposable strap supports, and adjustable positioned fastening means which can be selectively interposed between the support and the pad to securely lock the pad to the disposable support when worn. The fastening means disclosed herein securely locks the pad to the support, but it is further required that such an interlock may be conveniently released or un lock to dispose of the catamenial appliance, including the supports. The combination of the disclosed fastening means and disposable supports accomplish this purpose.

The invention may now be practiced in the many various ways which occur to those skilled in this art, and all such modifications in practice will comprise a part of the inventive concept behind the disclosed embodiments. The invention is now defined by the terms of the following claims which are given further meaning by the language of the preceding description.

I claim:

1. In a catamenial appliance having a pad of absorbable material and a fluid pervious covering which is longer than said pad to provide an extending portion at one end of said pad, and another extending portion at the opposite end of said pad, the combination which includes,

flexible strap means adapted to encircle the body of a user, the opposite free ends of said strap means further adapted to be securely joined to each other to desirably position the strap around said users body, said strap means having a pair of elongated and flexible straps at one of said end portions,

a single elongated and flexible strap at the other of said end portions, and

a slidable fastener mounted on one of said pair of straps, whereby said slidable fastener may be substantially aligned with said single strap so the free end of said single strap may be fastened to said slidable fastener at an adjustable fastening position.

2. An appliance as in claim 1 further characterized in that said slidable fastener includes a loop having a passageway to receive said flexible strap means in sliding relationship, a unitary holding plate depending from said loop, and said holding plate having means to fix the flexible material of said single strap.

3. An appliance as in claim 1 further characterized in that said slidable fastener has a substantially rigid tube to receive the flexible strap therein in sliding relationship, a locking plate is associated with said tube, and said plate 5 has holding means in which a portion of the flexible strap may be anchored.

4. In a catamenial appliance as in claim 1 further characterized in that said pair of straps and said single strap are substantially elastic cloth, one of said pair of straps is substantially longer than the other of said pair of straps so that when said pad is used and when said pair of straps are placed around the body of the user and when the free ends are joined towards the front of the user, the point where said free ends are joined is on one side of the torsos median line, whereby the slidable fastening means may be moved to said substantially median line so the free end of said single strap may be fastened to said fastening means without interruption.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,593,940 7/1926 King 128-289 1,705,194 3/1929 Marinsky 128289 1,959,282 5/1934 Bade 128289 2,645,225 7/1953 Sloan 128-289 2,827,053 3/1958 Gordon 128-289 2,881,761 4/1959 Kenner 128289 CHARLES F. ROSENBAUM, Primary Examiner 

